The Land of Painted Caves - Jean M. Auel [49]
The donii-women were expected to be available for the entire summer, or more, especially if they were acolytes. Young men had frequent urges, and it took a while for them to learn that the needs of women were different, their satisfactions more varied. But the donii-women were required to make sure that the young men didn’t form a lasting attachment, which was sometimes difficult.
Jondalar’s donii-woman was The First, when she was known as Zolena, and she had taught him well. Later, after he returned to the Ninth Cave after spending several years with Dalanar, he was often chosen. But at the time of his puberty, he became so enamored of Zolena, he would choose none of the other donii-women. More, he wanted her to be his mate, even though there was an age difference. The difficulty was that she also developed strong feelings for the tall, handsome, extremely charismatic young man with the pale blond hair and unusually vivid blue eyes, and that had created problems for both of them.
When they reached Manvelar’s lodge, they knocked on a wood panel near the entrance, and speaking in a louder voice, said who they were. He called to them to come in.
“Wolf is with us,” Ayla said.
“Bring him in,” Morizan said as he pushed open the door drape.
Ayla hadn’t seen much of Manvelar’s son since the lion hunt, and she smiled cordially at him. After everyone had been greeted, Ayla said, “I need to go to the zelandonia lodge. Could you keep Wolf, Jondalar? Sometimes he creates such a distraction, he disrupts things. I like to ask Zelandoni first, before I bring him there.”
“If no one minds,” Jondalar said, giving Morizan and Manvelar and the others in the lodge a questioning look.
“It’s fine. He can stay,” Manvelar said.
Ayla stooped down and looked at the animal. “Stay with Jondalar,” she said, making the hand signal at the same time. He nosed the baby and made her giggle, then sat down. Whining with concern, he anxiously watched her as she and the baby left, but he didn’t follow her.
When she reached the imposing lodge of the zelandonia, she tapped on the panel, and said, “It’s Ayla.”
“Come in,” she heard the familiar voice of the First Among Those Who Served The Great Earth Mother say. The drape covering the opening was pushed aside by a male acolyte and Ayla stepped in. Though oil lamps were burning, it was dark inside and she stood without moving for a while, waiting for her eyes to adjust. When she could finally see where she was going, she saw a group of people sitting near the large figure of the First. “Come join us, Ayla,” she said. She had waited before speaking, knowing how the darkness inside left people momentarily blinded.
As Ayla headed toward them, Jonayla started fussing. The change in lighting had disconcerted the baby. A couple of acolytes made a space for her, and she sat down between them, but before she could focus her attention on the proceedings inside, she had to settle her child. Thinking that she might be hungry, she exposed her breast and brought the baby to it. Everyone waited. She was the only one there with a child and she wondered if she had interrrupted something important, but she had been given a message that Zelandoni wanted to see her.
When Jonayla settled down, the First said, “I’m glad to see you here, Ayla. We didn’t see you last night.”
“No, we didn’t make it to the Meeting Camp,” she said.
Some of the people who hadn’t met her before were surprised at the way she said certain words. It made them curious. It wasn’t like anything they had heard before. They had no trouble understanding her; she knew the language well, and had a pleasing low-pitched